Friends from the Past: Sometimes Past
by Camy.MD
Summary: Companion piece to my "Friends from the Past" Universe that will contain bits and pieces of Ziva and Emily's friendship over the years, until their meeting in London. *AU* NCIS/Criminal Minds crossover - Ziva David and Emily Prentiss friendship ! Enjoy
1. Meeting Officer David

**Meeting Officer David**

"This is…beautiful" Emily says to her partner, who just looks at her and rolls his eyes. "I know you've been here more times than you can remember but still" Both of them were standing in the middle of nowhere, almost an hour away from Tel Aviv

Lopez smiles at her "Yeah Prentiss, it's still beautiful…it's a shame we're here on assignment otherwise I would've show you around"

Emily sighs "Why are we here again?"

"Classified for you, but don't worry joined operations with Mossad usually go smoothly, your only task is to be a mediator between us and Officer David…when you move higher you'll know it all" He winks at her before leaving the tent, knowing that it will happen sooner than she thinks

She's glad for being the only woman among the 8 Interpol agents that were sent to Tel Aviv, when her boss told her she was selected she couldn't believe it… she's the youngest of all of them and doesn't have security clearance high enough to even know what this is about, hell she's only been an agent for a year! But, she was chosen to be a full time liaison between both agencies and, as always, she'll do her best. Being the only woman means she gets her own tent, and she's more than grateful for the solitude…"Prentiss? Can I come in?" Emily hears Anderson's voice, "Yes"

"Hey, boss called…you have a meeting with Officer David tomorrow at 7" He says amused

Emily smiles "Good, I'll be in the city during the morning but I should be able to make it back in time" She really wants to walk around Tel Aviv before leaving, but they're an hour away from it

This time Anderson laughs "7 am Prentiss… the Officer will be waiting for you"

"Damn, I'll be there Anderson…and please, stop laughing" She says pissed

He laughs harder "The officer is serious and very young, but brilliant and efficient so don't make us look bad…after all we're known for being punctual"

Emily rolls her eyes "And I thought we were the cocky ones"

"You love England anyway… and yes, Americans are the cocky ones… it's annoying you know?"

"Oh? I've been giving you nothing but love since I arrived and this is how you pay me?" She jokes

He takes her hand "You're not annoying Prentiss and you should be more cocky, you're great"

She blushes "Thanks…I guess"

"Nonsense, it's the truth… I'll leave you alone now" Anderson says before kissing her cheek

Emily watches him go, he's been like a brother for her during this year and she couldn't be happier for that…Working in the biggest boys club in the world hasn't been exactly easy, but her dreams are coming true and that's all it matters.

During the rest of the day she hears all kind of things about the mysterious Officer David, who she assumes it's a guy because nobody told her the opposite; how he always gets the job done no matter what, the numerous languages he speaks and how everyone trusts his ways of doing things. She laughs because this are all stories that the agents have heard, in reality only Mossad agents have contact with him…this is the first time he will be making contact with them "You're so lucky Emily Prentiss" one of her colleagues says. She's curious about this guy, but at the same time worried she won't be good enough for the task…

**~~Friends from the Past~~**

The next morning she wakes up excited, from what she knows Anderson it's the only one that has been in touch with the officer, but he's not sharing with her "You'll be surprised" he says to her before she leaves

She walks with her head held high, not wanting to seem weak in front of the officer, and after what felt like hours walking she stands outside his tent "I'm looking for Officer David" she says and the guard nods…

"You are the first agent that pronounces my name correctly" Ziva David says to the shocked agent in front of her, and truth be told she's shocked too "And the first woman I see here, congratulations Agent Prentiss… this means you are one of the best"

Emily now understand why Anderson told her she would be surprised, "Thanks… good morning Officer David, I've heard a lot about you" They shake hands

"Only tales Prentiss, I bet you thought I was a guy" For the first time Ziva laughs in front of another agent, "Please, sit down"

Emily nods and sits "Actually yes, don't get me wrong but…"

"Mossad is a huge boys club too" she says "This just means we worked hard enough to be where we are now… my name is Ziva, by the way"

"I'm Emily" she says

Ziva smiles, "Let's get this over with" she takes out a couple of papers "Here are all the stuff your people needs to know, we will be moving in 3 days and hopefully we will be done that same day"

Emily nods "Good, I bet they will be happy to know that and to meet you…" she chuckles

"Oh no, I do not participate directly… as a control officer I only have to take care everyone does its job"

"Guess we will be the only ones here on Monday"

"You will?" Ziva asks surprised, she thought Emily would be involved

"Yeah, my security clearance isn't high enough… but I've been thinking about spending the day in the city" Emily says excited, she really wants to visit Tel Aviv before leaving

Ziva's eyes light up hearing this; she has never seen any interest in other agents to know her city "I could give you a tour"

"Really?" Emily says, surprised the young officer has time to walk around with her

Ziva nods "I would love to do it"

"Won't you be needed for the operation?"

"I trust my people, they'll do everything right" Ziva says proudly

Emily smiles again "Well then, I'll see you on Monday" she says standing up "It's good to finally meet you Ziva"

"You too Emily, I will see you on Monday" Ziva stands up and gives the agent a hug. She watches Emily leave her tent with a smile on her face, for some reason she feels close to the black haired American

**~~Friends from the Past~~**

Emily is happy, Anderson was right; she was in for a huge surprise. For some reason she already feels close to Ziva, maybe because they're both around the same age…she can't tell for sure but she definitely has 'something' that makes Emily trust her.

Anderson is waiting for her, "Surprise" he says laughing and she just smiles at him

"Surprise indeed but it was nice, she's nice" Emily says, giving her the papers Ziva gave her this morning "She sent you this"

"I'm glad to hear that, and thanks for bringing this… when do we start?"

"Monday, she said she's confident about this and you will probably be done the same day" She steps back to take off her shoes

Anderson nods "Then we probably will… that's all?"

"She offered to accompany me during my visit to Tel Aviv"

He's surprised "Wow, you're really one of the good ones Prentiss… nobody has ever seen a smile on her face and you managed to get that and a personal tour"

"Well… I don't know what it is but I feel like I know her and I think she thinks the same" Emily lets her friend know

"Trust your instinct then" Anderson tells her before taking his papers again "I got to go and talk with the others, get some rest… and remember you need to keep training"

Emily rolls her eyes "I know, believe me… while you're all out there I'll be sweating"

"Don't let the guys see you, they might be scared" He chuckles and Emily smiles, "Bye Emily and thanks for everything"

"Just doing my work…let me know if you need something else" He nods and leaves, Emily decides to change and just lay on her bed, after all she needs to do it if she wants to be at her 100% all the time. She still can't believe she's here, finally making her dreams true…sure, like her mother says it's a weird dream for a girl but who cares what others may think? ... Take Ziva, for example, if she cared about others would she be where she is right now? Does her family approve it? Do them feel proud?. She promises herself she will try her best to not make assumptions about people again.

Ziva David stands tall among her subordinates, and after ordering them to go and get some rest she decides to walk to the Interpol camp… she must admit she's very intrigued by Emily, since it's the very first time she comes across a woman in her line of work, sure she knows it's not that difficult to find them around the world, but still…she won't let this opportunity pass her by. She clears her throat, even though she already had the attention of most of the men in the camp "…I'm looking for Agent Prentiss" she says loud and clear

Anderson smiles "Officer David, it's nice to see you again" he says before shaking hands, "I'll lead you to Emily's tent" He tries not to laugh watching the others' faces

"How have you been Agent?" She asks politely

"Very good, thank you… I'm glad we're working together again" He says before calling his friend "Emily? Someone is here to see you"

"Come in" Emily says

Ziva hugs Agent Anderson "Let's hope it will not be the last one" She enters slowly "Shalom Emily"

"Ziva! What brings you here?" Emily hugs her "please sit"

Ziva sits and observes everything that surrounds her, clearly Emily is always learning, she can see books in Russian, Spanish, French "Te gustan los idiomas?" (Do you like languages?)

Emily's eyes light up hearing her "Si! Me encantan, ¿cuantos hablas?" (yes, I love them, how many do you speak?) She asks switching quickly to Spanish

Ziva smiles "Almost 7" she switches again, "I still have some problems with English, but I'm learning Russian, German and Italian now"

"That's a lot, I speak 6 fluently and right now I'm struggling with Arabic… but I could help you with your English or Russian or Italian" Emily chuckles "I speak Spanish, French, Italian, Russian, Greek and well English"

"I speak Hebrew, Arabic, Pashto, Turkish, French, Spanish and English" Ziva says proudly "Abba is always saying how important is to be able to communicate with the world…"

Emily rolls her eyes "Parents… mother is always telling me the same"

Both women are surprised at how easy is to speak with the other, soon enough they have a good impression of who the other is… "And you lived in all those countries?" Ziva says surprised, she has traveled a lot but she's never stayed anywhere for more than a couple of months

Emily nods "Yeah, it's very exhausting and lonely… since we never stayed for more than 2 or 3 years I became tired of saying good bye so I never made any friends, well except when I was in Italy…" She stops, she didn't realize she was about to reveal her biggest secret

Ziva takes her hand and a deep breath "My little sister died a few years ago, everything's been dark since then" a lonely tear rolls down her cheek

Emily looks away, "I've never told anybody but… I had an abortion when I was 15, mother didn't let me keep the baby" Acting on pure instinct she hugs Ziva as tight as she can "You know what? Here's my cell phone and address, whenever you feel like you're surrounded by darkness or you just need to talk…" She wipes her tears and writes her number

"We won't say good bye ok? From now on, I'm your friend" Ziva smiles and hugs Emily again, before writing her number too

**~~Friends from the Past~~**

"I can't believe you do this every day Zi" Emily says, Ziva woke her at 5 am for a run before they go to Tel Aviv

Ziva laughs "Mossad training is though Ems, but this was nothing"

Emily laughs too "I don't want to know… I'll never complain about Interpol again" she says before drinking the last bit of water in her bottle

"Let's go to my tent, I have breakfast waiting for us and clothes for you" Ziva says and Emily follows her. The camp is full of people running from one side to the other, getting ready for the mission, but as soon as Ziva arrives everyone is staring at them "I trust you're all more than capable of handling this, don't disappoint me" she looks at Ari while saying this, which doesn't go unnoticed by Emily, but Ari winks at her and Ziva knows he got her message.

Emily waits until they're inside "something going on?"

"What do you mean?" Ziva says

"You and that guy out there… it feels like you don't trust him" She says before sitting

Ziva sighs "He's my half brother, Ari…" She sits and starts eating, but then she realizes Emily is waiting for more "It's complicated Ems, I … I want to trust him but something inside me is telling me to be careful"

"You should listen to your gut Zi"

Ziva chuckles "That's the weirdest thing I've heard…" Emily winks and she continues "I love him, he's my brother and…"

"You don't want him to do anything he could regret, I understand" They keep eating in silence, both secretly hoping everything is right for all the agents

Ziva finishes her tea "Ready for Tel Aviv? A car will be taking us there"

"Of course! Thank you for coming with me again"

"Nonsense Ems, it's my city so I will show it to you… like you will show me the best of London when I go"

Both friends laugh and go outside, the sun is finally high in the sky and Emily feels happier than ever… she's not only starting what it will be an amazing career, she also has a new friend by her side

**~~Friends from the Past~~**

_Hello again! _

_I hope you like this prequel; I'm going to be adding bits and pieces of the story every now and then… all the one shots here will be from the past, the future ones will be on another post called "Sometimes Future" _

_I'll be writing more soon, probably one piece to open Sometimes future and go on from there…_

_Kisses, _

_Cami_


	2. Phone Calls

**Phone Calls**

"Please pick up, please pick up" Emily is desperate, but this is the third time she dials and goes to voicemail…again "Zi, I know you must be on a mission right now so please call me as soon as you can" She finishes sighing loudly, just to show her how bad things are. After years of pretending to be Lauren the whole thing blew up and she can't believe it… but she knows she would do it all over again to protect Declan. She still remembers the day, from what feels like a lifetime ago, when her boss told her she was going undercover… she still remembers how excited she was… they needed to capture the dealer, little did she know she would be the one playing house with him, let alone she would be the one falling for him

Ziva is exhausted, it's 4 am and she hates running around the world chasing her rogue brother… she hates seeing him with so much hate and pain inside. She takes her clothes off and gets inside the shower, her body is once again covered in dust and a couple of scars because Ari just won't listen to her…she sighs and lets the water run across her body. When she finally gets out of the bathroom and gets into bed she takes a quick look to her cell phone, only to realize Emily's been trying to reach her. She doesn't even hear her voicemail, ever since her friend is living as Lauren the calls between them has become few and far, so if she called her more than 2 times in one night it must be urgent "Ems, are you okay?"

Emily is relieved to hear her friend's voice "Oh Zi… it's over" She takes a deep breath while a few tears fall "I… it's over"

Ziva is also relieved; she has been too worried about Emily these last couple of years "Where are you?"

She breathes deeply again "Paris, you know where" Emily hangs up, knowing Ziva she will be by her side in no time

Ziva fixes her hair quickly before taking her bags and grabbing a cab to the airport. The flight from Stockholm is short, and she's thankful for that… she has known Emily for years now and she knows she must be really upset, after all she was falling for the guy and Declan was practically her son too… no matter what, they were a family

Emily tries to calm down, but she knows is useless… it's hard to be rational about something that started as a heartless lie but ended up being almost real. Declan is safe in the US, but she knows how Ian is feeling, thinking his son is dead…and she hates it. She looks at her watch again, it's 8:30; Ziva will be at her door soon. Her boss calls her to let her know she's safe and to congratulate her once again for her flawless job "Emily, you can ask me anything you want" he says and she knows he's sincere "We'll fix your records and you're good to do whatever you want" She kindly tells him she needs more time to think about it but that one thing is clear "I'm not going back to Interpol" Emily can tell he's disappointed but she knows he understands, he hangs up after asking her to please take care of herself

Ziva David stands outside her friend's apartment, worried but happy this is finally over. She knocks twice before saying "It's me", she hears Emily's footsteps across the room and when she opens, she hugs her as tight as she can "everything will be fine Ems, everything will be fine"

Emily breaks as soon as she sees her friend "It's over Zi…I don't know what to do now" she sobs harder

"Why don't we go inside?" Ziva asks sweetly and Emily nods before drying some of her tears "I'm glad you're safe Ems"

"Thank you for coming Zi, I don't know what I would do without you" Emily says before hugging Ziva again

"Always Ems… do you want to talk about it?" Ziva hugs her friend tighter

Emily shakes her head "Not yet, I promise I'll tell you everything but not yet" Ziva nods, "How did you get here so fast?"

Ziva sighs "I was in Stockholm when you called, chasing Ari"

"Again?"

"He's… I don't know what is wrong with him Emily, he's becoming someone I can't recognize" She says sadly "so full of hate and misery, I'm afraid of what he can do"

"At least you're still able to know where he is… that's good right?"

"I'm tired of constantly running behind him, sometimes I wish I didn't know"

"It will pass Ziva, you'll see" Emily takes her hand quietly "I sent Declan back to America"

Ziva closes her eyes "how are you?" she asks directly

"I don't know…" Emily sighs "everyone congratulates me, and tells me how amazing I am…"

"But you don't feel like that"

"No… I should be happy that Ian is in jail, but the truth is I'm sad, I feel awful. I'm just glad this is all over"

"I understand, I really do… and you have every right in the world to feel like that, don't punish yourself for it"

"You have no idea how much I needed to hear that, all I know is that I'm going back to the States… I have to take care of Declan" Emily says serious

Ziva nods "What about your job?"

"No more Interpol, but they promised to fix all my records…and my boss said I can ask for anything I want… I was thinking FBI"

Ziva smiles "Let me guess, BAU?"

Emily smiles for the first time "I hope so… I'm gonna miss you so much" she says hugging Ziva again

"And I you, but I'm happy knowing you'll be happy Emily… besides it's not like I can't catch a flight and go visit right?" She says happily

"Of course you can, whenever you want and I promise I will stay in touch" Emily adds, she was really upset about not being able to talk with her best friend like they used to

"Nothing changed Ems, I knew you were working and you were safe, you don't need to apologize for not calling as often as you used to"

"I know, that's why I love you more… we promised we would remain friends no matter what and you already went to hell and back with me" Emily says, touched by her friend's words

"I love you too and you're my best friend, of course I wanted to support you… I knew this assignment would be hard for you"

Both friends stay in silence, each of them thinking about their own demons, grateful for having someone to share the weight of their worlds…

Emily finally stands up "Come with me, I need to talk with my boss" She picks up her phone and goes to the balcony while Ziva follows her in silence. Emily decides to put the call on speaker, that way both of them will be able to hear…

"Emily Prentiss, I didn't think I would hear about you so soon" The strong British accent fills her ears

"I know, but I want to close this chapter as soon as possible" she says and Ziva smiles at her

"That seems fair, I can have your records ready to go by next week…did you already make a decision?"

Emily breathes slowly "Yes, I want to go back home"

"Really? Which agency? I bet any of them will be excited to have you"

"FBI, but I want to go to the behavioral analysis unit" she's excited just thinking about the possibility to work there

"I'll call their section chief tomorrow and I'll send her your resume, pack your bags Agent Prentiss I'm sure she won't say no"

"Thanks" She ends the call with a smile on her face. Turning around she sees that Ziva has a calm expression on her face "What's going on with you?"

Ziva shakes her head "nothing, I'm just happy for you Ems…you're getting your dream job"

"Like I said, I hope she likes me" Emily feels a little bit insecure, but she's really hoping that all this mess was worth it, that at least she will have one positive memory attached to it

Ziva senses her friend's change of mood "She will, don't worry"

"Hey, I just realized… how long are you staying?" Emily asks curious

Ziva is surprised, she didn't thought about "I…I really don't know, I guess I can stay until abba calls again"

Emily smiles "Good, I need you to survive until next week"

They both laugh, Emily is still worried about the future and Ziva still has no idea what will happen with her brother but at least they have a shoulder to lean on. Determined to move on, Emily wants to stay as far as she can from Lauren Reynolds and never look back

**~~Friends from the Past~~**

_Hi again, _

_I skipped a few years; like I said this one shot won't have chronological order…I'll just write whatever I feel like writing or something you ask : )I hope you liked this one, I have no idea when I'll be able to write again so thanks to everyone who takes the time to read my little stories and to leave really kind words !_

_And I don't know if you realize but I'm trying to set the mood for Ziva's arrival to NCIS…_

_Kisses, Cami_

_PD: I wish I owned NCIS or Criminal Minds, but I don't… I just borrow their characters to have fun _


	3. When A Door Closes

**When a door closes…**

"Zi, I have bad news" Emily says sadly from her bedroom. Ziva has been with her for about a week now, and she's grateful to have her close…between the capture of Ian Doyle and being so close to getting her dream job she's tired of the emotional rollercoaster, and it would've been definitely worse facing it by herself

Ziva closes her book, "What happened?"

"Boss called, he says the BAU can't accept me right now but the FBI gave him numerous options for me to choose… "She sighs, disappointed

"That's bad news indeed… what are you going to do?"

Emily shrugs "I want to go to the FBI anyway; maybe a desk job isn't a bad idea after all this mess"

"And after how long you will be trying for the BAU again?" Ziva says knowingly, Emily doesn't give up on anything

Emily laughs "You know me too well… I think I'm going to stay quiet for a while, and then I'll start poking the bears"

Ziva looks confused "Why would you poke a bear?"

Now Emily laughs harder "It means I'll start bothering everyone to get transferred to the BAU"

"Oh, ok I understand…but you still didn't answer me"

"Probably 2 or 3 quiet years to prove myself and then I'll follow my dream"

Ziva nods "sounds good to me" she stands up and hugs Emily

"Thank you, I hope it works"

"It will" Ziva says confident. "You're so stubborn that they will get bored and grant you your wish" She laughs and Emily rolls her eyes

"And here I was feeling bad because I haven't told you the good news yet"

"What would that be?"

"I don't have to go until next month!" Emily says excited

Ziva smiles "That's great, I'll just bother you until duty calls again"

"I was counting on that… what do you say if we take a little trip?"

Ziva raises an eyebrow "Where?"

"I have always wanted to go to Barcelona…" Emily says, confident that her friend will say yes "what do you think Zi?"

"I say…" Ziva teases Emily, but in the end she nods "let's go, you're going home in a month and I'm going to take advantage of the time off while I have it"

"We're going to celebrate your birthday there"

"I think abba will find a way to ruin that… but let's keep our fingers crossed"

Emily smiles at her friend "Ziva you're turning 25! We need to celebrate"

"It's not a big deal, 30 on the other hand…" Ziva jokes, she still has Emily's gift in her bag "now that you remind me..." she goes to her room

Emily stays in the living room "If that's a gift you're dead David" she says laughing

Ziva returns with a box "don't worry, it's nothing fancy but I hope you like it"

Emily opens the gift and smiles "It feels like it was ages ago"

"It kind of was… my very first visit to London as a tourist, summer 1996" Ziva says, happy that Emily seems happy with her gift "Do you like it? It also has a little message on the back"

Emily takes the picture out the frame and reads: _First visit from Israel! Thanks for everything Ems, Love Ziva._ "Zi, it's perfect thank you" she says and then hugs her

"I was going to send it to you back then but Lauren happened"

Emily smiles sadly "Well it means more now…" she hugs Ziva again "can you believe we've been friends for 5 years already?"

Ziva shakes her head "I know, time definitely flies when you're having fun"

"Right, and speaking of fun… we have some packing to do, Barcelona nos espera!" (Barcelona is waiting for us!) Emily says opening her laptop "I say first class…"

Ziva shakes her head "Emily, the flight isn't that long" she says looking at her, while Emily makes a fun face

Emily raises her hands "Fine, you win… but I'm choosing our hotel then"

"Como quieras Ems" (whatever you want Ems) Ziva says "Now I'm going to bed…it's been a long night after all, congratulations again"

Emily stretches "and thanks again for being here with me, you know what they say… when a door closes, a window opens" She hears Ziva's laugh before turning off the lights

"Good night Ems"

**~~Friends from the Past~~**

Emily sneaks carefully into their room, she finally has the cake in her hands and she doesn't want to drop it and ruin the surprise "Zi, where are you?" They've been in Barcelona for a week now and suddenly she's scared that Ziva might be gone, after all she said she was free until her dad called her "Ziva?"

Ziva is out in the balcony, the moonlight surrounds her, thinking of everything…Tali, Ari, her father. In a couple of minutes she will be 25, wondering if she will ever have the life she often used to imagine as a child… Emily's voice startles her "outside Ems!"

"Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday dear Ziva…happy birthday to you" Emily sings happily to her friend "make a wish!"

Ziva is touched, for a long time nobody has cared for her and now her friend, who is almost like a big sister, sings happy birthday for her in the middle of Barcelona. She blows the candles wishing for a surprise "You're the best Emily Prentiss, you really are" she hugs her tight

"Sweetie this is nothing, just wait to see what I have prepared for your wedding" Emily jokes

Ziva's eyes widen "wedding?"

"You'll meet the one soon…and I'll be the perfect maid of honor" She laughs "I'm kidding, you're only 25 so enjoy them as much as you can"

Ziva laughs and relaxes "The night is so beautiful…thanks again for all this Ems"

Emily looks at the moon "and again, it's nothing Zi..."

"Fine, just wait until your next birthday" Ziva says smiling "I'll have fireworks!"

"I'll remember you said that"

They are staying in Spain for another 2 weeks before it's Emily's time to say goodbye, and they have no idea when they'll be meeting again so this trip is all about relaxing and enjoying as much as they can

The next morning Ziva decides she wants to go the Sagrada Familia and Emily agrees, it's been years since the last time she was there so when both friends stand outside the magnificent and unfinished architectonical work they have huge smiles on their faces "Emily esto es maravilloso" (Emily this is marvelous) Ziva says, she decided that she wanted a full cultural experience and that means speaking in Spanish outside their hotel

"Si, no la recordaba muy bien" (Yes, I didn't remember it well) Emily takes a picture to remember it well this time "Disculpe, podría tomarnos una fotografia? Por favor" (Excuse me, could you take us a picture? Please) Emily asks to a guy standing near them

"Por supuesto…sonrían!" (Of course… smile!) He says and then gives Emily her camera back "Ustedes no son de aquí, verdad?" (You aren't from here, right?) He asks "Yo soy de Mexico pero vivo aquí hace ya casi 3 años" (I'm from Mexico but I've been living her for almost 3 years)

"Yo soy de Israel y mi amiga es de Estados Unidos" (I'm from Israel and my friend is from The United States) Ziva says "Un gusto conocerte, que tengas un buen día" (Nice to meet you, have a nice day) they say goodbye to the guy and keep walking around the city

Emily takes more than a hundred photos that day, smiling, with silly faces and leaving their mark all over the city. Ziva buys some souvenirs for her and tries to memorize everything around her "Volveremos pronto espero" (We'll be back soon I hope) Ziva says

"We still have 2 more weeks here Zi, but yeah we have to come back son" Emily says and Ziva smirks "What? Oh Zi, lo olvidé" (Zi, I forgot) Emily laughs

** ~~Friends from the Past~~**

"How did you get to go first? I swear this is scaring me" Ziva says, Emily is leaving Paris today to start working with the FBI. They're standing in the middle of Charles de Gaulle Airport, just a couple of days after their return from Barcelona

Emily has a huge smile on her face, "don't worry Zi, it only means your brother is behaving and your father always knows where you are…go back to my place, enjoy your last 2 days here and then go back home and tell Eli he owes you a gift" Both friends laugh and Emily hugs Ziva for the last time "Promise you'll visit soon"

Ziva smiles too "of course I will…I'm going to miss you" she says and with that Emily seems happy "now go or you're going to miss your flight"

"Yes, I… I'll go now, call me when you're back in Israel" She says before kissing Ziva's cheek

Ziva nods "Have fun in terrorism" she says laughing and watches her friend passing through security, before she finally disappears. Then she sends her a text: _call me when you land, good luck. Zi. _

_I will, Ems. _Emily types fast before turning off her cell phone. Her boarding pass and passport are safe in her purse and that's all she needs to know

Ziva walks calmly back outside, she's returning to Israel after a month out and she hopes nothing major happened. It's a little bit cold but she doesn't mind, the day is still beautiful. For her surprise her cell phone rings "Hello?"

"Ziva, I expect you back within the week" The voice of Eli David is loud and clear

Ziva sighs, "Yes, I'll be there in 2 days" she didn't expect the call and she's not so sure she wanted one, but it's time to go back to the real world

"Happy 25 birthday… I hope you enjoyed my gift"

"Thank you abba… but what gift?"

"The month off, I'll send a car to the airport for you" The call ends as abruptly as it came… Ziva takes a long breath and keeps walking to find a cab

** ~~Friends from the Past~~**

"Where are you?" Emily says, she's been in Chicago for 2 months now and so far everything's been great

Ziva looks around "Abu Dhabi… Ari made contact with one of the biggest terrorist cell of the UAE, and I have to make sure he does not do anything stupid"

"Do you need any help?" Emily asks immediately

Ziva smiles "Not yet Ems, but thank you; everything seems calm so far…" She briefly wonders how long things will stay like that "Anyway, how's Chicago?"

"So far so good, a little bit boring but I guess after spending almost 4 years undercover everything seems boring for a while"

"That's true… don't worry, you'll get used to it. And I'll try to drop by soon"

Emily smiles "I'll be waiting then… be careful please"

"I will, you too…" Ziva hangs up first, and goes into her room… she won't admit it but she's definitely worried about Ari and what he's doing, especially since she heard her father talking about it on the phone the other night: _He's becoming a treat, disobeying direct orders and running around, if this continues it must be taken care of._ She knows too well what that means

On the other side of the Atlantic, Emily looks around her new office; she's still having a hard time processing everything that happened on the last 6 weeks, but as always she won't let the past stop her... she has a target in mind and she will get there, for now she just has to work. Her phone rings and she answer happily "Prentiss"

"Emily, my darling, why didn't you tell me you were coming back to America?"

Emily shuts her eyes tight "Because mother, that's none of your business" she says, wanting to end this conversation fast

Elizabeth closes her eyes, hurt by Emily's words, but she won't let her know "I'm your mother Emily, everything about you is my business"

"Fine, how are you?"

"Good, thanks for asking…are you enjoying your new job?" The sarcasm is clear in her voice; she knows her daughter will never be satisfied with just a desk job

Emily rolls her eyes, she saw this coming "Yes, everything is perfect… now is there a specific reason for this call or you just wanted to criticize my job?"

"Since you're back home, I'm calling to let you know that our annual Christmas gala will be in New York and I expect to see you there"

Emily sighs, she didn't think about the galas while thinking about coming back "I don't know, maybe I'll be working"

"Anthony Duncan will be here…" She regrets saying it as soon as it leaves her mouth

"I'm going to stop you right there, if you are planning to set me up with someone I'm definitely not going. Goodbye mother" Emily huffs, she knows she's 30 but that doesn't give her mother the right to try and marry her with some stupid politician's son. She wants to talk about with Ziva but she must be sleeping now, so she leaves a message in her voicemail "Can you believe the Ambassador is trying to set me up again? Ugh I'm so…angry! Anyway, I needed to say this…take care"

Ziva wakes up and the first thing she does is looking at her cell phone, after hearing Emily's message she calls her, but she doesn't answer "Hey Ems, you're probably asleep…don't be angry, she's only trying to help or maybe she does not want to see you alone, I don't know…I'll try to drop by around Christmas so will have a valid excuse to not be at the gala ok? Relax, I'll be the open window. Take care"

A couple of hours later, Emily can't stop laughing… she writes a text for Ziva: _That saying is better used when you talk about missed opportunities or stuff like that, but I appreciate the intention ;). _

**~~Friends from the Past~~**

_Yay! Another one finished… as you probably noticed I'm adding time details now, so here I left you my own timeline for the entire "Friends from The Past" series. Kisses, and enjoy!_

_PS: I don't own anything; I'm just borrowing for fun…_

_**Timeline**_

_Birthdays_

_Emily: October 12, 1970 – Ziva: November 12, 1975 _

_(I had to make Ziva a little bit older than in the show so this story would make sense, but the dates are the ones from the show… how cool is that their birthdays are only a month apart?!)_

_First Meeting_

_Year: 1995_

_Emily: 25 years old – Ziva: 20 years old_

_Arrivals to the BAU & NCIS_

_Emily: 2006, 36 years old – Ziva: 2005, 30 years old_

_Back to London & Israel_

_Emily: 2012, 42 years old – Ziva: 2013, 38 years old_

_Return in "Friends from the Past"_

_Year: 2014_

_Emily: 44 years old – Ziva: 39 years old_


	4. Make a Wish

**Make a Wish**

Ziva looks around, it's almost Christmas and the airport is packed; Emily promised to come for her, after almost 2 months chasing Ari nonstop across Europe she finally got some time off to visit her best friend

Emily is excited, after Ziva told her she was definitely coming to Chicago for Christmas so she could stay away from her mother's gala she started planning the perfect night for both of them, so she bought everything she could possibly need to mix their traditions. After a couple of minutes she can see her friend's curls so she raises the paper in her hands "Ziva!"

Ziva hears her name and looks ahead; she can see Emily and a paper with her name on it. Smiling she walks a little bit faster "Ems!" she yells and Emily laughs. They are finally close enough to hug each other "I got here as fast as I could"

"Perfect timing Zi, don't worry" Emily says, hugging her again "how was Europe?" she asks, her job is getting boring and she needs some action

Ziva shrugs "Same as always, I guess…" she says "what about you?"

"Boring, so boring" Emily says "I still can't believe I've been doing this job for a year, but you know me, I know what I want and I just …have to be patient" she adds

"I'll do my best to drop by more often" Ziva says

"That would be awesome; I need the adrenaline to stay calm" they start walking towards the exit "are you tired?" she asks

Ziva shakes her head "No, I slept almost the whole flight, why?"

"Then let's go, I found an amazing bar a couple of minutes away from my place so we'll drop your stuff first and head there"

"I could use a drink" Ziva says

**~~Friends from the Past~~**

Considering is Monday, the bar is almost empty but they don't mind "so, what do I need to know if I'm working with the FBI?" Ziva asks

Emily puts down her glass "Not much, but I'll let you know if something important comes up"

Ziva chuckles "you really are bored" she says "it will be worth it Ems, but in the meantime have you met anyone interesting?"

"Ugh don't tell me about it, guys here are the worst" Emily says "nothing worth my time yet" she sighs "I don't understand why a woman can't be single in her thirties, between my mom and …I don't know, society, I have this ridiculous pressure on me"

"Don't let it break you, you'll find a guy, maybe not now but whenever you do it won't be late so it's ok" Ziva says

"Since when are you so romantic?" Emily asks

Ziva laughs "Oh you wound me Ems, I have always been a romantic, I just like romance on others not me"

"lame" Emily says "you want romance too"

Ziva raises an eyebrow "Maybe, I don't know… but between Ari and my father it's not like I have a lot of free time to go on a date, and if I do the second I tell them my last name they assume I work for Mossad and disappear"

"You do" Emily chuckles

Ziva shakes her head "I know but it's not like I tell everyone about my job, they don't need to know about it"

Emily nods "That's right, I can't remember if it was 2 or 3 weeks ago, I went on a date with a guy I met at the park and the second I said FBI he got nervous, and before you ask no, he never called again"

Ziva laughs "well, at least we have each other"

Emily smiles "that's true, you can always introduce me to one of your colleagues"

"Right back at you Prentiss"

**~~Friends from the Past~~**

The walk to Emily's place is uneventful, both friends comfortable enough with each other to share the silence, until a couple walks beside them and they burst with laughter

"I'm sorry!" Emily says to the girl "it's not you, it's me" the couple keeps walking and she keeps laughing "Oh my god, I can't believe I said that" she says to Ziva, who can't even breathe

Ziva has tears rolling down her face "My stomach hurts!" she says, still laughing "I can't stop"

Emily takes a deep breath "oh, oh… ok, I'm ok now" she says, still smiling "I think we're a little drunk"

"Just a little" Ziva says "and you have to work tomorrow"

"You're the worst" Emily says

Ziva shakes her head "Not true"

"I'm not going to say anything about it" Emily says, taking out her keys "come inside, I'll make us some tea, because if I don't, I'm not going to wake up tomorrow"

"I'll be at your room" Ziva says, she takes her time to look at everything, this is the first time Emily gets a house, she has a beautiful backyard and a second floor with a balcony. She goes upstairs and open the doors to the balcony, it's late an almost every light is off leaving only the moon and the stars

"I didn't have green so I brought you white tea" Emily says softly "It's beautiful isn't it?" she asks, looking up

Ziva shakes her head "It's perfect, thank you" she says, and looks up again "It is, I could be here all night"

"If you had the opportunity to make one wish, and no matter what it would come true…what would you choose?" Emily asks, with her eyes fixed on the sky

Ziva sighs, takes a long sip of her tea and stays silent "Honestly? I would wish to meet you earlier, back on those darker days, perhaps when Tali died… I think that's when I needed someone… you the most" they have always been honest about their feelings and she doesn't see a reason to hide it, "or to remain friends forever" she adds smiling, and at the same time hoping it wasn't too much

Emily's tearing up "I love you too Zi" she says, hugging her friend. "You're my only friend, and you know what, I would wish the same" She understands that both of them are used to being alone, but thanks to Ziva she also understands the importance of having someone by your side…no matter what "Can you imagine all the trouble we would have caused as kids?" she smirks

"Oh that would've been so much fun!" Ziva says excited, "I would have taught you how to fight"

"I bet the Ambassador would've loved that" Emily says laughing "but, we met when it was meant to be and now our future kids can do all the crazy stuff they want together"

"Guess we will have to wait and see" Ziva says, finishing her cup "now I'm officially going to bed, and you should too, you have work tomorrow"

"You're right…" Emily says "and Zi?"

Ziva turns around "yeah?"

"Our wishes might change, but not our friendship ok?" Emily says serious

Ziva nods and smiles "through hell and back"

**~~Friends from the Past~~**

_Hello everyone ! _

_Short & fluff, I hope you like it, this one has been in my laptop for a while now but I didn't have time for an update before… now I'm finally on vacations ! so expect a lot of updates from now on, specially on "Sometimes Future" :D _

_I hope you're all having an awesome month, if you're still with finals I send you my best wishes!_

_Kisses, Cami_


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